Just saw where my college’s graduation rate is only 53%, and I assume that’s everyone who was ever a full-time student (or am I wrong), but is that normal?

It was a private school and not cheap, so maybe that’s why, but is that normal?

I think college is a huge scam and I don’t think I’m better than anyone because I think it was a huge waste of money, but is the graduation rate like that low most places?

The average graduation rate across the nation is 63% as of 2020. The college I attended has a 59% graduation rate.

The university I went to has a 67% acceptance rate so I figured the grad rate might be higher, but still sitting at 65% for 4-year graduation rate. Which is interesting because back when I was there, I didn’t know a single person as a freshman who didn’t graduate.

My college no longer exists, so 0%.

Apparently it was 70+ percent though.

(10-16-2023, 12:54 PM)KillerGoose Wrote: The average graduation rate across the nation is 63% as of 2020. The college I attended has a 59% graduation rate.

Unless you're in a speciality, college really isn't that hard as long as you go to class, do the work, let the professor know you're at least trying, and don't completely bomb the exams.

(10-16-2023, 01:41 PM)MileHighGrowler Wrote: The university I went to has a 67% acceptance rate so I figured the grad rate might be higher, but still sitting at 65% for 4-year graduation rate. Which is interesting because back when I was there, I didn’t know a single person as a freshman who didn’t graduate.

I knew a bunch just because of sports and transfers.

We had a bunch of kids quit or switch schools because our football team only won one or two games a year so they realized that it was stupid and quit.

I also went five years so didn't graduate with many people from my original class.

I didn't go off to school at 18, but rather went to night school in my thirties to get my BS. The "school" was actually a satellite facility to a main campus in another state, so since most people there were adults like me with established careers and families and striving to improve their lot, I'd imagine for our specific facility it was quite high. But for the overall system, which includes kids on Mom and Dad's dime, it is precisely the national average of 63% quoted above, according to the interwebs.

(10-17-2023, 11:40 AM)Awful Llama Wrote: I didn't go off to school at 18, but rather went to night school in my thirties to get my BS.  The "school" was actually a satellite facility to a main campus in another state, so since most people there were adults like me with established careers and families and striving to improve their lot, I'd imagine for our specific facility it was quite high.  But for the overall system, which includes kids on Mom and Dad's dime, it is precisely the national average of 63% quoted above, according to the interwebs.

Yep, I did the exact same thing. I went to a community college and then to night classes at a satellite campus. Many adults in my classes, but some other college aged kids like me at the time. I would imagine the graduation rate at my location was very high as well, but can only quote the overall institution. 

(10-16-2023, 12:47 PM)BFritz21 Wrote: Just saw where my college’s graduation rate is only 53%

That's not the college's problem but rather on the individuals who didn't have the grit to earn a credential. Attending a university or college is a privilege, not an educational right like public school for K12. It is an academic challenge and supposed to be difficult. Attending higher education is costly though so I have empathy for those that cannot complete their degree because of the high financial cost.

I only ever positioned myself to ensure I was in the percentage that graduated for my degrees. College isn't for everyone and plenty of individuals can be successful and contribute to society without a college degree. I respect anyone for whatever path they select to do good and right for their own life. That out of the way, I'm proud to have earned degrees and it has improved my quality of life.

(10-17-2023, 11:46 AM)KillerGoose Wrote: Yep, I did the exact same thing. I went to a community college and then to night classes at a satellite campus. Many adults in my classes, but some other college aged kids like me at the time. I would imagine the graduation rate at my location was very high as well, but can only quote the overall institution. 

I too went to a community college and received an Associate degree when I was 21.  At my first FT office job I was making slightly more than those without any schooling, but it was no path to prosperity.  So, eventually, it dawned on me that I had to drag my happy but back to school and get the Bachelor degree or I'd never make any money.   

I wish I had went away to school when I was 18 just for the whole experience.  But education wasn't something my parents ever worried much about even for themselves, so that wasn't something that was stressed in our home or anything that I ever strived for.  It took some years of real world experience before I realized I needed to get more education.  

(10-16-2023, 12:54 PM)KillerGoose Wrote: The average graduation rate across the nation is 63% as of 2020. The college I attended has a 59% graduation rate.

That is interesting that your source cites 63% in 2014, as the site I went to when looking for my college painted a different picture on an 8 year study of the Freshman class of 2015.

Of the 33 class mates i started with 3 of us graduated...

(10-17-2023, 12:04 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: I too went to a community college and received an Associate degree when I was 21.  At my first FT office job I was making slightly more than those without any schooling, but it was no path to prosperity.  So, eventually, it dawned on me that I had to drag my happy but back to school and get the Bachelor degree or I'd never make any money.   

I wish I had went away to school when I was 18 just for the whole experience.  But education wasn't something my parents ever worried much about even for themselves, so that wasn't something that was stressed in our home or anything that I ever strived for.  It took some years of real world experience before I realized I needed to get more education.  

Pretty similar story to mine. No one in my family had ever gone to college before me, so it just wasn't a thing that my parents thought of much. I only did it because it was just "the thing to do". I wasn't the greatest student in high school. I was a class clown, hated keeping up with my homework and made OK grades. Nothing special. Nothing for a scholarship, surely. So, I went to a community college and actually started enjoying school. I found I liked math quite a bit, statistics even more. I went to the satellite campus and graduated without issue to go into the "real" world as I saw it. I had been working full-time throughout most of this, but it still felt like I was a kid goofing off. 

I too sometimes wish I had actually gotten the college experience, but I think it was for the best that I didn't. I wasn't much of a partier but I think introducing all of those distractions would have made it more difficult for me to come out as well as I did. I would've chased girls, undoubtedly. Instead, I graduated with no debt and an immediate job. I'm happy it worked the way it did. 

(10-17-2023, 12:14 PM)KillerGoose Wrote: Pretty similar story to mine. No one in my family had ever gone to college before me, so it just wasn't a thing that my parents thought of much. I only did it because it was just "the thing to do". I wasn't the greatest student in high school. I was a class clown, hated keeping up with my homework and made OK grades. Nothing special. Nothing for a scholarship, surely. So, I went to a community college and actually started enjoying school. I found I liked math quite a bit, statistics even more. I went to the satellite campus and graduated without issue to go into the "real" world as I saw it. I had been working full-time throughout most of this, but it still felt like I was a kid goofing off. 

I too sometimes wish I had actually gotten the college experience, but I think it was for the best that I didn't. I wasn't much of a partier but I think introducing all of those distractions would have made it more difficult for me to come out as well as I did. I would've chased girls, undoubtedly. Instead, I graduated with no debt and an immediate job. I'm happy it worked the way it did. 

I could have written exactly what you wrote, except for the math part.  Math is from Satan, to my mind 

You mentioned scholarships, which reminded me of my own school financing,  During my night school days I did borrow some money for classes but mostly paid out of pocket as I went.  At the time I graduated I owed only $4,100.00.  Can you imagine that now, only $4.1k in loans?  It's absolutely insane what an education costs these days.

(10-17-2023, 12:30 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: I could have written exactly what you wrote, except for the math part.  Math is from Satan, to my mind 

You mentioned scholarships, which reminded me of my own school financing,  During my night school days I did borrow some money for classes but mostly paid out of pocket as I went.  At the time I graduated I owed only $4,100.00.  Can you imagine that now, only $4.1k in loans?  It's absolutely insane what an education costs these days.

Oh, don't get me started on education costs. It is truly absurd how expensive it is. Several of my friends went to big state colleges and exited with $60k-$100k in debt. They were able to get it paid off, but it's just insane that we are getting to the point where there is a genuine mathematical discussion of "is this even worth it anymore?"

(10-17-2023, 11:54 AM)TecmoBengals Wrote: That's not the college's problem but rather on the individuals who didn't have the grit to earn a credential. Attending a university or college is a privilege, not an educational right like public school for K12. It is an academic challenge and supposed to be difficult. Attending higher education is costly though so I have empathy for those that cannot complete their degree because of the high financial cost.

I only ever positioned myself to ensure I was in the percentage that graduated for my degrees. College isn't for everyone and plenty of individuals can be successful and contribute to society without a college degree. I respect anyone for whatever path they select to do good and right for their own life. That out of the way, I'm proud to have earned degrees and it has improved my quality of life.

I completely agree that some people come to college with no vision and no goals of anything, so they don't get much experience or knowledge into what they're doing.

It blows me away that some people go to college for a few years and just **** around and get nothing done.

Don't get me wrong because we partied, but we weren't going to college "just to go" like a lot of people that only lasted a year or two, if that.

College is far from a scam.  Justify your own position however you like, but going to college and getting a degree that provides a viable job skill, in an in demand job market, is an excellent way to go.  The problem as i see it are people paying 60-300k$ for worthless liberal arts degrees that will leave them without a job to pay back the bills.  Better to go to a trade school if you can't handle a STEM degree IMO.

My wife as a nurse with a BSN (no masters) makes over 6 figures with just 10 years of experience.  My daughter with a Mechanical Engineering degree from U of Houston, with only a 3.1 GPA makes almost as much as my wife and she just had her 1 year anniversary on her job.  She works for SLB as a Cement Engineering Supervisor on rigs out in West Texas.

Get a degree that provides with a viable job skill in  a job market that is desperate for manpower, and you'll make a killing.  On the contrary, if you go to college to get an Art History or International Studies (with no plan to go to graduate school for either), then you're a F'ing moron and deserve to be saddled with debt the rest of your life.  Better to go to Vocational School and become a mechanic.

Oh.....to actually answer the question.

Miami University - 80.6% graduation rate, provides 137 different degrees and considered one of the most prestigious public schools in the country.  One of the schools called a "Public Ivy".  One of the foremost public colleges in the country to get an undergraduate business degree, to either immediately get a job (finance, marketing, etc.) or go on to higher education (Med, Law, MBA, etc.).

West Virginia University - 60.7% graduation rate provides only 87 total degrees, and considered one of the foremost party schools in the nation.  Was the first school that Playboy put in the "Party School" Hall of Fame because they won every year when they ranked the party schools.  Yet they have a renowned education department, Law School and Medical School.

And no my grades were not stellar to get into either school.  3.4 in HS to get into Miami and 3.2 at Miami to get into WVU.

I go to all this detail above, because they are the polar opposite of public schools, yet both provide degrees that generate excellent jobs.  Personally, I got Geology degrees from both schools, neither of which is known as a renowned Geology school.  You don't have to attend the best schools or get the best grades to get a good job.  Just don't get a shyty degree.

(10-17-2023, 08:26 PM)Stewy Wrote: College is far from a scam.  Justify your own position however you like, but going to college and getting a degree that provides a viable job skill, in an in demand job market, is an excellent way to go.  The problem as i see it are people paying 60-300k$ for worthless liberal arts degrees that will leave them without a job to pay back the bills.  Better to go to a trade school if you can't handle a STEM degree IMO.

My wife as a nurse with a BSN (no masters) makes over 6 figures with just 10 years of experience.  My daughter with a Mechanical Engineering degree from U of Houston, with only a 3.1 GPA makes almost as much as my wife and she just had her 1 year anniversary on her job.  She works for SLB as a Cement Engineering Supervisor on rigs out in West Texas.

Get a degree that provides with a viable job skill in  a job market that is desperate for manpower, and you'll make a killing.  On the contrary, if you go to college to get an Art History or International Studies (with no plan to go to graduate school for either), then you're a F'ing moron and deserve to be saddled with debt the rest of your life.  Better to go to Vocational School and become a mechanic.

Oh.....to actually answer the question.

Miami University - 80.6% graduation rate, provides 137 different degrees and considered one of the most prestigious public schools in the country.  One of the schools called a "Public Ivy".  One of the foremost public colleges in the country to get an undergraduate business degree, to either immediately get a job (finance, marketing, etc.) or go on to higher education (Med, Law, MBA, etc.).

West Virginia University - 60.7% graduation rate provides only 87 total degrees, and considered one of the foremost party schools in the nation.  Was the first school that Playboy put in the "Party School" Hall of Fame because they won every year when they ranked the party schools.  Yet they have a renowned education department, Law School and Medical School.

And no my grades were not stellar to get into either school.  3.4 in HS to get into Miami and 3.2 at Miami to get into WVU.

I go to all this detail above, because they are the polar opposite of public schools, yet both provide degrees that generate excellent jobs.  Personally, I got Geology degrees from both schools, neither of which is known as a renowned Geology school.  You don't have to attend the best schools or get the best grades to get a good job.  Just don't get a shyty degree.

Nice, a fellow Miami University grad. I'd imagine there are many of us on this board.

(10-17-2023, 12:30 PM)Awful Llama Wrote: I could have written exactly what you wrote, except for the math part.  Math is from Satan, to my mind 

You mentioned scholarships, which reminded me of my own school financing,  During my night school days I did borrow some money for classes but mostly paid out of pocket as I went.  At the time I graduated I owed only $4,100.00.  Can you imagine that now, only $4.1k in loans?  It's absolutely insane what an education costs these days.

Yeah. My son only owes 30k and it sounds weird to say that. We did pay a good amount out of pocket though.

Looked up my school; 80% graduation rate, 50% divorce rate according to one source

My daughter was accepted into Auburn’s architecture program for this fall.

Tuition $17K/semester
Room and Board $8K
Misc. fees $4K

Approximately, $60K/yr. Architecture is a 5 year program = $300K.

It would cost more for her to go to college out of state for one year than four years of out of state tuition for most colleges back in my day, sonny.

(10-20-2023, 01:27 PM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: Looked up my school; 80% graduation rate, 50% divorce rate according to one source

My daughter was accepted into Auburn’s architecture program for this fall.

Tuition $17K/semester
Room and Board $8K
Misc. fees $4K

Approximately, $60K/yr. Architecture is a 5 year program = $300K.

It would cost more for her to go to college out of state for one year than four years of out of state tuition for most colleges back in my day, sonny.

divorce rate is a weird stat for a school...     Is any attendies or just couples that got married while at the school together?

I am gonna guess i'm likely the only one here that went to my College. lol which no longer exist